The black sun hangs high

Chapter 461 Opening the Door and Asking Questions
In the wide corridor outside the main gate of the base, flashing lights shone on one hunched figure after another.

The rat-man priests and warriors summoned by Azifu had already gathered here. They had all felt the violent tremors that had occurred earlier and heard the tremors coming from the deepest part of this "ruin".

What shocked the rat people even more were the various devices that started operating again because they were being powered.

They were terrified by what they had seen.

Only at this moment did they realize the astonishing past of this hollow "mountain" that their tribe regarded as a sacred sanctuary.

The slender light strips embedded in the walls fascinated them, the large machines flashing with regular light instilled fear in them, and the war machines damaged and scrapped in past battles exuded a tragic and heroic aura that they had never possessed before when illuminated by the light.

When the ratmen rode their giant rats to Azifu's side, they were even more awestruck by the metal gate covered with countless characters and patterns. Faced with those unfamiliar lines and designs, many ratmen warriors couldn't help but kneel down and try to seek answers from their Mother Earth.

Of course, they received no response, so the bewildered and confused warriors turned their gaze to the wise ratman prophet ahead.

However, Aziv was unable to provide them with any response or answers.

Azifu was certainly superior to the other ratmen tribe members in terms of wisdom and experience, but what was happening before him now was completely beyond the scope of his knowledge.

Although Aziv knew that this vast and mysterious ruin must represent some kind of extinct civilization beyond his imagination, it did not mean that he could understand the marks left by the ancient civilization before him. Compared with the Vaan he remembered, everything here was too strange and advanced. When the strange lamps started working again, he realized that his past experience and knowledge of magic now seemed incredibly crude and shallow.

"Mother Goddess...so beautiful! They are so beautiful!"

A ratman priest, who also had a deep understanding of magical rituals, lay hungry on an unknown instrument leaning against the wall. He could sense the magic flowing inside the huge metal instrument and feel the incredibly complex magical circuits. However, the way these circuits were constructed and the rules they followed were completely different from any ritual he had ever learned.

The cold, orderly, and interconnected structure pushed the limited magic to its limits, and the beauty emanating from this quality perfectly matched the obsessive pragmatism inherent in these rat people.

"Prophet! Prophet!"

The lead ratman warrior approached Aziv, lowered his head, and, suppressing his trembling, whispered, "These metals—hmm, magical, moving metals—maybe they can become our weapons! Yes, weapons!"

As it spoke, it excitedly raised its paw and pointed to an abandoned war machine that was paralyzed in the middle of the road.

Although the machine itself had been destroyed in past battles and its pilot was long gone, the Dark Abyss artifact that destroyed it had not completely destroyed the weapons and equipment on it. After the large magic circuit inside the base began to resume operation, the two miniature turrets on this war machine also regained some of their functionality.

Now, many ratman warriors and priests are gathered around this steel monster, staring wide-eyed at the two metal turrets that rotate and sway at a specific frequency, completely mesmerized.

Although they were completely unable to figure out the true purpose of the unfamiliar objects, the instincts of the rat people kept reminding them that these things were very useful, extremely useful!
Seeing that a priest was about to start studying the equipment, Azifu quickly stopped him. Although he also didn't understand these devices, they were clearly destroyed in the battle against the Dark Abyss creations, and anything that could fight against the Dark Abyss court could not be harmless.

He didn't want to cause unnecessary trouble and disaster at this time.

Although the rat people have awkward and strange personalities, their faith in the Earth Mother Goddess is unwavering. From this faith, their trust and obedience to Aziv are deeply rooted. Therefore, despite their great curiosity about everything here, none of them dare to disobey the orders of the tribe's prophet.

Faced with those bewildered eyes, Aziv pondered for a moment before explaining, "The envoy... it is the supreme and noble envoy who has changed everything here. He is revealing the truth of this place to us!"

"Oh, messenger!"

Upon hearing this, the ratmen immediately understood. Two priests who had previously accompanied the ratmen hunting party became extremely excited. As the lucky ones who had witnessed Hugh's immense power firsthand, they immediately took on the responsibility of explaining to their companions. In their descriptions, Hugh's power and the "divine blessing" he possessed were exaggerated several times over.

Aziv did not stop the two priests from exaggerating. After all the ratmen were convinced of Hugh's existence, he opportunely used Hugh's identity as an emissary to issue a new order: "We have many tasks to complete before the emissary comes out!"

"Warriors! I want you to search our surroundings, redraw our map, and mark any metal that looks safe enough and still intact; it could be of great help to our tribe!"

“Priests, come with me... Do you see those patterns on the gate? These are important revelations. Begin copying and engraving them! Do not overlook any of the patterns. I believe they contain the most important secrets of this sacred place!”

"..."

As orders were given, the ratmen who had gathered together quickly dispersed. As they explored their surroundings anew, they successfully discovered new areas that their tribes had never set foot in before. These areas had mostly been sealed off by heavy metal doors or walls. With the replenishment of energy and magic, the previously blocked roads were opened, and brand-new items stored inside those warehouses appeared before the ratmen.

Of course, under Aziv's control, the ratmen did not touch or use these unfamiliar items without permission. They simply marked them and sent several warriors back to the tribe on the fastest giant rats—there were just too many and too varied things here, and they needed many more tribesmen to help them.

After working for an unknown period of time, a senior priest came to Azifu's side.

"The prophet... the messenger, yes, the messenger... when will he come out?"

The priest held the intricately carved stone slab in his hands with a sorrowful expression: "We are truly unable to unravel those secrets; I believe only the messenger can provide the answers for us..."

Aziv nodded at him: "Let's wait a little longer."

“Yes, perhaps we could establish an outpost here? Maybe the envoy will need to stay inside for quite some time?” Aziv was somewhat noncommittal to this suggestion. He didn’t respond, but instead looked at the magnificent gate that emitted strange light and shadow with his hands behind his back. He could always feel some strange magical fluctuations now, which were subtly different from before. He felt that some kind of change was about to happen, but he couldn’t say exactly what it was.

Just then, a muffled thud came from the direction of the gate. All the ratmen immediately stopped what they were doing and looked up nervously. They saw that the light and shadow and intricate text covering the surface of the gate had all twisted into new lines. Amidst the magical tremors and muffled thuds, these lines re-converged into a new pattern on the surface of the metal gate.

It was a gear, or rather a disc, so enormous that it occupied the very center of the entire gate, and as the disc slowly turned, more and more details emerged from within.

A large number of intricately interlocking and interconnected structures were stacked on top of each other. The moment they appeared, they began to operate. As these intricate structures operated, the huge metal disc also began to rotate. The orderly mechanical sounds entered the ears of every ratman. This sound seemed to contain a strong charm, causing the ratmen to kneel down and pray.

For a moment, only Aziv remained standing in place.

A moment later, an even more muffled sound came, and the violent tremors once again spread throughout the entire ruins. Then, every member of the ratman tribe present saw that in the very center of the enormous metal doors that could not possibly be opened by human power, an incredibly dazzling narrow slit appeared. It was so bright that many of the young ratmen born in the Dark Abyss were reminded of the "sun" that the prophet had once described as their distant homeland.

The moment he saw the blinding light, Aziv, who had his back to all the ratmen, let out a long sigh of relief, and a faint smile finally appeared on his usually tense rat-like face.

But then, Aziv became tense again, because as the "crack" widened, a wave of magical energy that made him tremble surged out of the light like a tidal wave. Under the impact of this tidal wave, Aziv felt that the magical energy in his body became extremely chaotic, and his senses seemed to be significantly interfered with. What made him even more uneasy was that in this sudden impact, he clearly felt a familiar aura that made him extremely uneasy.

That was the aura of the Dark Abyss Palace.

Cold, chaotic, disordered, and distorted.

Aziv will never forget this feeling, after all, his original human identity and the corresponding physical body were torn apart alive under the influence of this aura.

The difference lies in the fact that the power rushing towards them now is far purer and stronger than that of the Dark Abyss Hounds. This level of power is so exaggerated that the moment Aziv sensed it, he completely lost the motivation and thought to fight against it.

The other rat-man priests were also affected by this power. They trembled as they raised their weapons, or, in fear, took out stone tablets engraved with magical ritual patterns, trying to gain some sense of security from them.

And so, amidst the trembling of the ratmen and the continuous roaring and tremors, the intricate disc, which existed in the form of magical patterns, finally came to a slow stop. The patterns that made it up gradually faded away, and as the magic dissipated, the roaring and tremors also slowly subsided.

When everything returned to calm, the original thin line had been widened into a gap that still looked narrow, but for such an enormous gate, the gap was wide enough.

Under the watchful eyes of countless rat-men, a figure appeared in the light.

Because of the backlight, the figure appeared incredibly dark and deep, reminding the ratmen of those terrifying servants who walked through the Dark Abyss Wasteland, spreading the will and terror of the court. However, the figure's steps were steady and firm, quite unlike those servants whose movements were erratic and strange.

Finally, Hugh's familiar face appeared before Aziv.

Aziv was cautious and perceptive. The moment Hugh came in front of him, he raised his eyes and carefully observed the other's face. He was surprised to find that Hugh seemed to be immersed in a subtle state.

He appeared calm and resolute, but in his eyes, weariness and sorrow were clearly brewing.

This reassured Aziv much, but at the same time, he also felt somewhat worried.

Hugh stopped in his tracks, bathed in the bright light. His gaze slowly swept over the ratmen gathered in front of him, and finally, he looked at Aziv and nodded slowly to him.

Aziv felt quite uneasy.

He knew that the other party did indeed possess extremely terrifying power, a power that could even overthrow and wipe out the entire ratman tribe in an instant. In other words, he did not have the confidence to negotiate or trade with the other party at present.

"Mr. Aziv, thank you."

Looking at the aged ratman prophet before him, Hugh said, "Right here, I did find clues related to our 'homeland.' Moreover, behind this tightly closed door lies some invaluable and important secrets."

At this point, Hugh paused slightly, the results of his conversation with Theseus flashing through his mind. Then, he said seriously, "These secrets may not necessarily allow me to return to Vaan, but the power hidden behind them is enough to bring about earth-shattering changes to your entire tribe."

Upon hearing these words, Azifu's eyes widened, his mouth slightly open, but he couldn't utter a sound for a moment.

Hugh's words did not stop because of Aziv's change in expression. He continued in a steady voice, "And now, as the temporary controller and allocator of these secrets and powers, I need to confirm one thing with you and your kin."

"Now, an opportunity is presented to you."

"If you choose to accept all that lies behind me, it will completely change your fate and the course of your entire race. If you can make good use of those secrets, you may be able to gain power that can influence or even shake the entire Dark Abyss in the near future... But at the same time, it is extremely dangerous. Choosing it means actively exposing yourself. If you are not careful, your race's relatively peaceful life will be completely ended, and what will follow will be a swift and complete annihilation."

"What...would you choose?"

(End of this chapter)